Capsule With Whole Body LED Photo-Therapy System

ABSTRACT

A personal therapy compartment includes a base of size to receive a human patient. The compartment includes a bed in the base said bed being made of a light transmissive material. An array of lights mounted is below the bed to transmit light onto a body supported on the bed. A control panel controls at least the wavelength, intensity and pulsation of the light.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 61/033,122 which was filed on Mar. 3, 2008, the contents ofwhich is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an individual covered compartment orcapsule in which a person can lie for various therapeutic treatments.The capsule includes the ability to provide for a whole bodyphoto-therapy system including controllable wavelength LEDs and/orinfrared lights.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the prior art, various environmental capsules have been advanced,including for example, the structure shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,809and U.S. Pat. No. 6,497,717. The treatments that are present in theprior art devices include steam therapy, heat therapy, infrared heat andlight exposure, pleasing sound sources, aroma therapy and some capsulesprovide a shower mounted in the cover or base of the capsule.

The capsules generally comprise a base that is large enough toaccommodate a support or bed in a lower portion, and a hinged cover thatcan be opened so that a person can get in and out of the lower part orbase of the capsule. The cover usually has individual controls for theprovided therapy source such as a shower, heat, steam, sound, aroma orother therapy source can be mounted in a position where a person lyingon the bed can reach and operate the controls. In addition, it has longbeen known to have a vibrator on the bed to provide a relaxing, massagetype vibration.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a personal therapy capsule that canincorporate one or more of the features from the prior art. The capsuleof the present invention further includes an array of LED lights and/orinfrared lights mounted below a transparent bed or body support thatwill support a human lying generally horizontally. Additionally, LEDlights have desired hue or color and infrared lights can be mounteddirectly in the cover and arranged along the length of the cover and thewidth of the cover so that a total body photo therapy treatment can beadvanced.

The present invention has LEDs and infrared lights that havecontrollable wavelength output. The wavelength can be adjusted throughknown controls from between approximately 400 nm to 800 nm in thevisible spectrum and the infrared range is between 800-2000 nm.

Each individual condition of a person can be treated or provided withtherapy at a different wavelength, for example, 400 nm, 560 nm or 640nm, etc. to provide therapy for conditions including, but not limitedto, psoriasis, dermatological conditions, skin tightening, circulatorystimulation, fine lines and wrinkles, obesity and excessive weight,stimulation for hair growth, reducing swelling and hematoma,accelerating wound healing, enhancing tissue repair, relievinginflammation and pain associated with inflammation, relieving neurogenicpain, reversing effects of toxins in the body, regenerating nerves,increasing fibroblast and collagen growth factors and the treatment ofarthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome.

The device can utilize selected visible wavelength lights such ascolorful LEDs that are selected in the known blue, red, yellow and greenhues, and selected thermal generation invisible infrared lights. Thedevice allows the selected visible and the selected invisible lights tobe utilized at desired frequencies, together or independently, to treata symptom. For instance, wrinkles are typically treated with 630 nmvisible light and carpal tunnel syndrome is typically treated withinvisible light at a wavelength of about 830 nm.

The LED and/or infrared light therapy is available to the entire bodytrunk or to regions of the body trunk, such as the shoulders, back,mid-section, stomach and chest. The LED and/or infrared light therapy isavailable to the limbs including the right leg and/or left leg and theright and or left arm. Any combination of areas of the body can betreated by having the lights arrayed in clusters or “gangs” that can becontrolled individually. The lights also can be timed, pulsed, andvaried in intensity, such as with the power level.

The display for the user or patient can be a LCD display that will showwhich sections are energized, and at what wavelength, as well as othercritical information as to the interior temperature, and similarparameters.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a personal treatment capsulewith a cover in a closed position;

FIG. 2 is a planned view of the bed of FIG. 1 schematically showing alayout of lighting arrays;

FIG. 3 is a view of a cover of the capsule of FIG. 1 in an open positionshowing a lighting array on the interior of the cover;

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of the interior of the cover with thecover inverted;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the cover shown inverted with a locationof a control panel for an operator and location of control regions shownat the head end of the cover; and

FIG. 6 is a flat layout of an LED array for placing adjacent a face of apatient in the capsule.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIG. 1, a full body photo treatment compartment assembly isgenerated at 10 in cross-section, to show the interior. The systemincludes a base unit 12, and a cover 14 that is hinged at a hinge axis16 at the foot end 17 of the compartment base 12. The base 12 issupported on a three-point leg system, preferably including a pedestal12A, and forward legs 12C.

The three-legged arrangement provides stability of support withoutrocking or problems with unevenness of a support floor. Other forms ofsupport for the base can be utilized and are contemplated.

The base 12 is provided with a bed platform 18, in this case made out ofa clear acrylic or other clear plastic material, so that it istransparent to light of different wavelengths. The upper surface 18A ofthe bed positioned at various angles and the bed 18 includes an upperbody portion 18B that supports the shoulder and upper back region of aperson lying on the support bed 18. The bed 18 also includes a lowerback panel or portion 18C, that is at a comfortable angle relative tothe portion 18B, and a leg panel or support 18D that is at the foot endof the bed.

The base 12 forms a lower compartment 20 that can house variouscomponents, such as a steam generator 22 that is mounted to provide forsteam therapy, if desired, at steam outlets represented generally at22A. The compartment 20 also can hold a water tank 24 that will have apump and supply lines connected to showerheads. By way of example, ashowerhead 24A is shown in the cover 14 in FIG. 1. The showing of theshower head is not limited to any particular placement. If desired,showerheads can be placed in other locations along the sides of thecover or in the base. Suitable drainage troughs will be provided andthis can easily be done because the base 12 is generally molded plasticor fiberglass material that can be shaped as desired.

The present invention utilizes the transparent bed 18 on which a personcan lie, in connection with LED lights and infrared light sourcescomprising small bulbs mounted in an array on a light support panel 26for the upper back portion of the bed. A light support panel 28 isprovided for the lower back, immediately below the lower back panel 18Cof the bed, and a pair of leg light panels 30A and 30B are provided (seeFIG. 3) that are individually controlled so that one leg or the other orboth can be provided with light therapy through the transparent bedwhich is represented in FIG. 3 by the outline.

The light support panels 28, 30A and 30B are illustrated being mountedto the bed 18. However, the light support panels 28, 30A and 30B canalso be mounted the wall of the lower compartment 20. When mounted tothe wall of the lower compartment 20, the clusters light support panels28, 30A and 30B are less likely to be damaged when compared to mountingthe light support panels to the bed 18. Also when the panels 28, 30A and30B are mounted to the wall of the lower compartment 20, the bed can beeasily removed and cleaned and/or sanitized.

The light panels 26, 28, 30A and 30B can be seen below the bed 12because the bed is transparent, and the grid pattern shown represents amultitude of small LED lights that are mounted in the panels 26, 28, 30Aand 30B. The numbers of the LEDs that are used, and the colors that areused can be varied as desired by the operator, and can be blue, red,yellow, green, clear, or other colored light sources that can becontrolled as to intensity and as to the frequency of the output. Thecontrols indicated in 32 are conventional controls. The block 38represents the individual LED arrays, and block 40 represents theinfrared arrays. Each LED or infrared array of lights can be selectedand switched for controlling the selected array. The location of thearray will be displayed on the operator's screen. The controls areavailable for modifying the frequency of the lights of the selectedarray at block 38 as are represented at block 36. As can be seen, thecontrol block 42 houses these various electronic components and then thelight panels 26, 28, 30A and 30B are selectively, or simultaneouslyconnected through suitable lines to the controls. An operator display ata location 66 can have the needed information displayed to the user.

Besides being able to control the wavelength of the LED array, thecontrol panel can also be utilized to control the energy output of thelight arrays. A typical energy output for the LED used in the LED arraysrange from about 5 mW to about 5 W from each LED in the array. Anothertypical energy output is between 5 mW and 500 mW from each LED in thearray. The control panel is also able to control the angle at which thebeams of light engage the person where the LED beam angle typicallyranges from 0 to 90 degrees.

In FIG. 3, the darker outlines represent placement of infrared lightarrays for heat therapy along the shoulders, as indicated at 46A and46B, and along the buttock or back portions at 48A and 48B, as well asthe myriad of LEDs forming arrays represented by the lines formingsquares in the panels 26, 28, 30A and 30B.

The placement of the light panels can be as desired, and can include acentral infrared section on both of the panels 26 and 28 as indicated at50A and 50B.

In the person's leg area, infrared light sections are shown at 52A and52B, and again these can be controlled from the controls 42 usingsuitable electronic controls available for lights.

Schematically represented at 54 are brackets for holding the bed panel18 in position relative to the base 12. These mounts can be of anydesired type.

The cover 14 is shown in FIG. 1 as supporting not only showerheads 24Abut a light panel assembly 60 that is supported on the upper portions ofthe cover in a suitable manner, and which contains a myriad of LEDs orinfrared lights forming light arrays. FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate the cover14 in an inverted position. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the LEDpanel 60 in position along a tunnel member 62 that can be for carryingheated air if desired. The cover 14 has a dividing panel 64 at the headend, and this includes the region 66 for supporting the control paneldisplay for the controls shown schematically at 42. The panel 64 isrecessed as at 68 to permit the neck of the person lying in thecompartment to cross the panel 64 so the person's head is to theexterior of the closed compartment.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view to show an array 60 of LEDs or other lights,and it can be seen at the length and width that the LED panel can bemade as desired and then supported on the interior top of the cover 14.

Each of the line intersections shown in the gridwork and indicated at 70represents an LED. The number of LEDs can be varied substantially asdesired to suit the treatment purposes.

In FIG. 2, the LED or light array panel 60 is illustrated with the cover14 open, and the control panel is illustrated at 70, and is of adifferent form that can be folded up or down into the cover, as desired.

Steam outlets 24A are illustrated at the forward end of the unit andthese can be placed at any desired location.

In FIG. 2, the LED grid is shown schematically, but additionally a panelindicated at 72 can be provided for an array of infrared lights atdesired locations along the panel 60, and as shown, the array ofinfrared lights can be separately controlled by the control system.

Although LED grids are illustrated, it is also contemplated to utilizesmaller sized clusters where more clusters are utilized for one largegrid. The clusters are typically of the same configuration and size suchthat when a cluster malfunctions, only one cluster needs to be replacedinstead of an entire array. While the entire array must be replaced,only a small portion of the array may have malfunctioned. Therefore, byproviding numerous clusters of the same configuration, such as asubstantially round perimeter, maintenance time and replacement costscan be reduced when compared to the large arrays.

A cluster of lights can have any desired number of LEDs. A clustertypically includes between 1,000 and 20,000 LEDs.

By operating the controls to provide for different wavelengths of lightfrom the LEDs, for example 400 nm, 560 nm, 640 nm, or greater, thephoto-therapy can be directed toward a specific type of treatment, suchas for psoriasis, dermatological conditions, skin tightening,circulatory stimulation, fine lines and wrinkles, obesity and excessiveweight, stimulation for hair growth, reducing swelling and hematoma,accelerating wound healing, enhancing tissue repair, relievinginflammation and pain associated with inflammation, relieving neurogenicpain, reversing effects of toxins in the body, regenerating nerves,increasing fibroblast and collagen growth factors and the treatment ofarthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome. For example, the bed, with the 3LED panels, can have an array in the range of 8,000 or more yellow,blue, green or red LEDs, and also an array of about 2,000 bulbs thatemit infrared wavelengths for heat.

A person will lie on the bed 18 to receive the photo-therapy as light istransmitted through the clear bed 18.

The controls can be provided for continuous or variable pulsationfrequency of the light, and the intensity, power level, the infraredthermal temperature, and intermixing the sequence of LED and infraredtreatment can be made. Also, oxygen can be injected into the capsule toraise the oxygen concentration within the capsule.

The water tank 24 can be used for providing a humidifying vaporizationand/or misting system through the outlets shown at 24A, that would allowthe application and spray or envelopment of the body of the user ofdifferent solutions that are photosensitive and/or photoactive fordifferent therapies. Photosensitive agents can be placed in the tank 24and then misted onto the body of a person on the bed at desired times.

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic view of a facial panel 79 that supportsan array of a number of LEDs and is indicated at 80. This facial panel79 can be suspended on or adjacent the divider panel 64 on the cover,and provides for the panel shown at 80 is fragmentarily shown in FIG. 4.The panel 79 and light array 80 can be made to cover substantially theentire area or selected portions of the panel 64 and can beindependently suspended and located, if desired. The facial panel 79 canalso include adjustable LEDs, of various colors as outlined, and caninclude infrared lights as well.

The infrared light sources can be small bulbs arranged in an array, orlarger forms as desired.

Features such as dry heat air, steam, ceramic and/or course midrange andfar-range infrared heaters can be added in the cover as previously shownin the prior art, and a mist source, a shower, a humidifier, ahydrotherapy source, electrical stimulation and various entertainmentsources can be used, such as DVD players, music sources and the like.

Although the present invention has been described with reference topreferred embodiments, workers skilled in the art will recognize thatchanges may be made in form and detail without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention.

1. A personal therapy compartment having a base of size to receive ahuman patient, a bed in the base said bed being made of a lighttransmissive material, and an array of lights mounted below the bed totransmit light onto a body supported on the bed.
 2. The compartment inclaim 1, wherein said lights comprise light-emitting diodes.
 3. Thecompartment of claim 2, wherein said light-emitting diodes are selectedfrom one or more of the colors consisting of red, blue, yellow, andgreen.
 4. The compartment of claim 1, wherein said lights are mounted ona plurality of panels below selected sections of the light-transmissivebed, a light array on each of said panels being individuallycontrollable as to light intensity and frequency.
 5. The compartment ofclaim 1, wherein said compartment includes a cover, said cover overlyinga person lying on the bed, and a light-transmitting source mounted inthe cover for directing light at selected frequencies over a substantialportion of a body of a person lying on the bed.
 6. The compartment ofclaim 5 and a light panel comprising a plurality of individual lightsources, said panel being suspended in a position to direct light onto aface of a person lying on the bed.
 7. The compartment of claim 1 andwherein the light is transmitted onto the body with LED bulbs eachhaving an energy output intensity of between about 5 mW and 5 W.
 8. Thecompartment of claim 1 and wherein the light is transmitted onto thebody with LED bulbs each having an intensity of between about 5 mW and500 mW.
 9. The compartment of claim 1 and wherein the light is pulsed.10. The compartment of claim 1 and wherein the engagement angle of thelight of the LED bulb ranges between 0 degrees and 90 degrees.
 11. Thecompartment of claim 1 and wherein the light is transmitted in thevisible spectrum between 400 nm and 800 nm.
 12. The compartment of claim1 and further comprising transmitting light onto the body in theinfrared frequency range of between about 800 nm and 2000 nm.
 13. Thecompartment of claim 1 and wherein the array of lights are mounted tothe bed.
 14. The compartment of claim 1 and wherein the array of lightsare mounted to the compartment below the bed.
 15. The compartment ofclaim 1 and wherein the array of lights comprises a polygonal perimeter.16. The compartment of claim 1 and wherein the array of lights comprisesa substantially circular perimeter.
 17. A personal therapy compartmenthaving a base of size to receive a human patient, a bed in the base saidbed being made of a light transmissive material, and an array of lightsmounted below the bed to transmit light onto a body supported on the bedand a control panel for controlling at least the wavelength, intensityand pulsation of the light.
 18. The compartment in claim 17, whereinsaid lights comprise light-emitting diodes.
 19. The compartment of claim17, wherein said lights are mounted on a plurality of panels belowselected sections of the light-transmissive bed, a light array on eachof said panels being individually controllable as to light intensity andfrequency.
 20. The compartment of claim 17, wherein said compartmentincludes a cover, said cover overlying a person lying on the bed, and alight-transmitting source mounted in the cover for directing light atselected frequencies over a substantial portion of a body of a personlying on the bed.